Trump administration certifies Iran adhering to nuke deal

US administration once again recertifies Iran nuclear deal, and pledges to strengthen its enforcement.

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JTA, 18/07/17 08:30

Donald Trump

Reuters

JTA - The Trump administration once again recertified the Iran nuclear deal, and pledged to strengthen its enforcement.

The decision to recertify the deal Monday came after delays caused by President Donald Trump, who said during campaigning for the presidency that the deal, reached in 2015 by the Obama administration, was the worst he had ever seen. The deal must be recertified every 90 days.

Trump advisers, the New York Times reported, persuaded him to recertify because the Iranians were complying with the deal’s restrictions, which have only to do with Iran’s nuclear program. Trump is unhappy that Iran continues apace in its non-nuclear related actions opposed by the United States, including missile testing and interventions in other conflicts, particularly in Yemen and Syria.

In a conference call with reporters on Monday evening, administration officials said they would toughen enforcement of the deal. A similar pledge was made at the last recertification three months ago; it’s not clear what tougher enforcement means, precisely.

The deal trades sanctions relief for a rollback of Iran’s capability to manufacture a nuclear weapon. The advisers pressing for certification, according to the Times, included Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, National Security Adviser H. R. McMaster and Gen. Joseph F. Dunford, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. U.S. allies could sour on the Trump administration if it is perceived as responsible for the collapse of the deal.

Trump, like Obama before him, has continued to sanction Iran for its ballistic missile development and for its backing of terrorism and for its interventions in conflicts in the region.